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Monday, 13 June 2011

No all-out war in Yemen , Gates says

No all-out war in Yemen , Gates says

Source : AP, 14/06/2011

WASHINGTON —Defense Secretary Robert Gates sounded cautiously optimistic about developments in Yemen, where the government and opposition tribes have engaged in armed clashes, pushing the country toward civil war.

Gates said in an interview that the Yemen situation has calmed since President Ali Abdullah Saleh left for neighboring Saudi Arabia on June 5 for medical treatment of wounds he suffered in an attack on his compound in Yemen's capital, Sanaa.

"I don't think you'll see a full-blown war there," Gates said.

A little over two weeks before ending his 4½ year tenure as Pentagon chief, Gates sat for an Associated Press interview that touched on a range of issues, including his expectations for a smooth handoff to his designated successor, current CIA director Leon Panetta. Gates will retire June 30.